Chris Saltzman was a prolific player for the Penn State Behrend men’s basketball team from 2007-2011. He helped the Lions to an AMCC Championship and two NCAA Tournament appearances. Saltzman led the team in points and rebounds per game in his junior year, earning First Team All-Conference honors and being named ECAC South Tournament Most Valuable Player. In 2010-11, the senior co-captain averaged 17.1 points and shot 52.4 percent from the floor to be named the AMCC Co-Player of the Year, ECAC and NABC All-Star, All-District, All-Region and First Team All-AMCC. Saltzman ended his career with the coveted Behrend Athlete of the Year Award.
Saltzman got to be part of the program’s third AMCC Championship team in his freshman season. The Lions advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament and finished with a 24-5 overall record. Saltzman went from scoring 23 points to scoring 225 and averaging 9.0 points per game his sophomore year. Behrend tallied an 18-10 record and earned a bid to the ECAC Tournament.
Saltzman’s career was just beginning to blossom by the time he hit the 2009-10 season. He led the team in scoring with 14.8 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. Saltzman made his first collegiate start this year and never stopped. He started in all 29 contests, shot 48.1 percent from the floor and 80.0 from the free-throw line. Saltzman led the Lions back to the ECAC Tournament and helped Behrend capture the ECAC South Region Title. He collected All-AMCC First Team honors, ECAC South Tournament Most Valuable Player accolades and was voted Team MVP.
In his final season, the guard earned nearly every award in the book besides All-American. Saltzman was voted AMCC Preseason Co-Player of the Year for scoring 429 points and leading the league in scoring the previous year. He led the team once again in scoring, this time pouring in 17.1 points per game and averaging 5.1 rebounds. The co-captain led the Lions to an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament after a two-point loss to La Roche in the AMCC Championship game. He repeated on the All-AMCC First Team and earned AMCC Co-Player of the Year honors, living up to the preseason hype. Saltzman was an ECAC South and NABC All-Star and received All-Region accolades from D3Hoops and the NABC.
He finished his four years with 1,155 points and averaged 49.1 percent shooting from the floor. Saltzman is ranked 13th all-time in field-goals made and 15th in points. He topped his career with the coveted Behrend Male Athlete of the Year award.